Friday, August 12, 2011

Mrs. Beeton - Excellent Rolls
From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This week, those of us who are working our way through the Gourmet Live list of the 50 Women Game-Changers in Food, had our most difficult challenge to date. Hannah Glasse and Mrs. Beeton, both of whom wrote popular cookbooks in 18th and 19th century England, share the spotlight. You'll better understand the difficulty the group faced as you read through the recipes here, and on the sites of the other participants. The exercise was really interesting, though not one I'd choose to repeat. Both these women deserve a spot on the Gourmet list for their efforts in developing recipes for homemakers in the burgeoning ranks of the Georgian and Victorian middle-classes. It would not be an over-statement to consider them to be the Martha Stewart of their respective times. Their historical importance, especially in Britain, can't be denied, but I do question their positional placement on the list here in the United States. As you might suspect, the recipes are archaic and don't work really well in today's kitchens. It is fascinating to browse through books like this, but they can be frustrating to work with. I'm including a bit of information about each woman and the recipes I used to produce the food in today's pictures. You should know that the Beeton recipe does not work as it is written. It took some colorful language and additional liquid to make the dough for her rolls. Both recipes are curiosities. If you have patience and like to step outside your comfort zone, you might enjoy giving them a try. I, however, promise nothing.

Hannah Glasse wrote The Art Of Cookery in 1794 to support herself after her marriage to a ne'er-do-well fell apart. It was one of the first simple recipe books for British homemakers and it was wildly successful. Unfortunately, the woman who was once described as queen of the dinner party, lost her fortune and spent the later years of her life in a debtor's prision. I've chosen to represent her work with her recipe for Shrewsbury Cakes. The cakes, as you can see, are actually cookies.

Original Recipe
Take two pounds of flour, a pound of ſugar finely ſearced, mix them together (take out a quarter of a pound to roll them in) take four eggs beat, four ſpoonfuls of cream, and two ſpoonfuls of roſe-water, beat them well together, and mix them with the flour into a paſte, roll them into thin cakes, and bake them in a quick oven.

Modern Redaction:
Ingredients: 900g plain flour 450g powdered sugar 4 eggs, beaten 4 tbsp cream 2 tbsp rose water.
Method: Combine the flour and sugar in a bowl. Remove 115g and set aside for dusting your work surfaces. In a separate bowl whisk together the eggs, cream and rose water. Gradually add the flour and sugar mix, beating thoroughly to combine. Bring the mixture together as a dough then turn out onto a work surface dusted with the reserved flour and sugar mix. Dust the top of the dough and your rolling pin then roll out about 3mm thick. Cut into rounds with a fluted pastry cutter and transfer to a lightly-greased baking tray. Prick the tops of the biscuits then transfer to an oven pre-heated to 180°C and bake for about 12 minutes, or until cooked through. Transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool before serving or storing.

Isabella Beeton's Book of Household Management was published in 1861. She wrote the book in a four year period that began when she was 21 years old. The book is still in print today. She was married to a publisher and turned to cooking and writing following the death of her first child. She died of pueperal sepsis following the birth of her fourth child. She was 28 years old at the time. I chose a bread recipe to represent her work. As it turned out, it was a poor choice. It did not work as written.

Recipe
IngredientsFor every lb. of flour allow 1 oz. of butter, 1/4 pint of milk, 1 large teaspoonful of yeast, a little salt.
MethodWarm the butter in the milk, add to it the yeast and salt, and mix these ingredients well together. Put the flour into a pan, stir in the above ingredients, and let the dough rise, covered in a warm place. Knead it well, make it into rolls, let them rise again for a few minutes, and bake in a quick oven. Richer rolls may be made by adding 1 or 2 eggs and a larger proportion of butter, and their appearance improved by brushing the tops over with yolk of egg or a little milk.
Time1 lb. of flour, divided into 6 rolls, from 15 to 20 minutes.

The following bloggers are also paying tribute to Hannah Glasse and Mrs.Beeton. I hope you'll visit all of them.

Next week we will highlight the food and recipes of Patricia Wells, a personal favorite of mine. It will be really interesting to see what everyone comes up with. If you'd like to join us please email me for additional information. Everyone is welcome.

I didn't know Hannah Glasse and Mrs.Beeton and haven't used lb and pints for ages! Even here in NZ are not used anymore (I remember having to put them in when I did my first book, but not ever since... I actually forgot!!!

I am always fascinated by old cookbooks.For me those were true masters of teh kitchen..not having tools or preknowledeg and still rwting masterpieces like that.I do agree their recepies are hard to follow and they often make me smille but I stilln keep reading them:)

as always... Love the series. i listen to a British podcast cooking show and they are always referencing their "mother's Mrs. Beeton" as in an old out of date recipe. VERY happy to hear a respectful side.

You really went for it this week with recipes by both of these women! I'm looking forward to Patricia Wells next week as I've never made anything by her before. As always, thank you for organizing this!

Oh yeah, I definitely ran into my share of frustrations this week...so much that I almost threw my hands in the air and said forget it (actually I did w/ Glasse...couldn't take it). But Mrs. Beeton's book was more "doable" for me and though I went simple, I wasn't disappointed. It looks like your "cakes" and rolls turned out beautifully :D

Kudos to you for sticking to the task. I would have never guessed the challenges you faced, as both recipe photos look beautiful. I particularly think the rolls are gorgeous.! Ah, bread. With fall coming, it's time to dig up yeast. I'll admire the photos, but go on to try something less challenging!

i sometimes wonder too why certain recipes dont work at all but nowadays certain food authors do have their phone numbers or email included in the book just in case any enquiries on the recipe. Thanks for all the links you provided, will be glad to know them.

What a wonderful post. I read a biography of Beeton not too long ago (can't remember the name) but it was really a fun read. Seems like so many of the early cookery writers were married to ne'er-do-wells. I believe her husband had catted around quite a bit before marriage and there was some speculation that perhaps her health issues, including early death, had something to do with venereal disease (!!). Anyway, fascinating stuff, and what a great idea these posts are. When I inherited a bunch of my great-great-grandma's recipes, I have found the same thing, the results are very hit and miss. But fun recipes to try, nevertheless. Thanks so much for the entertaining post :)

Such an interesting post about these two women! I've never heard of Hannah Glasse but find Mrs. Beeton fascinating. There's a BBC movie about her life that I keep wanting to watch and think its amazing how her book still serves as a reference guide! The recipes look lovely!

I'm really enjoying this series! I know what you mean about old cookbooks. My mom's Honpa Hongwanji Cookbook circa 1976 is the beginning of local island cookbooks in Hawaii, but whenever I make something the recipes seem incomplete. Like a teaser, it leaves you asking so many questions! But I still love it.

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